Month: March 2008

Most people have slow computers. And while most people don’t know it, you can easily make your computer faster. Even if you’re using a five year old computer, you can in some cases double its performance by following these steps. This isn’t a tweaking guide, this is just a list of some ways that you can optimize and speed up your computer. Let’s start with the basics.

Viruses, Adware, Spyware

First off, you need a good antivirus program and a good anti-malware program. I use AVG Free and Adaware SE. You should not have more than one antivirus and one anti-malware program installed on your computer because they will interfere with each other. Antivirus that comes preinstalled on your PC is useless, and it is one of the major reasons why your computer is so slow. Once you have a good antivirus program, scan your computer and clean it up.

After a Moderator on the Creative Forums posted that Daniel_K’s modded Vista drivers were to no longer be distributed, the members were infuriated. All over the internet people have been protesting Creative’s decision, because Creative themselves have not developed a driver that gives its own sound cards full functionality in Vista. Today, it appears that Newegg has decided to stop selling Creative sound cards because of this.

Here is a link to the post by an account called “newegg”. There is reason to believe that this is a genuine Newegg account because the account’s profile shows a newegg.com email address. To activate the account and be able to post, the account would have to be activated through a link sent to that email address. I am not 100% sure about it, but there is a fairly high chance.

Some forum members have also created threads showing interest in starting a class-action lawsuit.

I have taken screenshots in case Creative deletes the thread. Click on them to enlarge.

Apparently Microsoft France’s Francois Ruault stated in a French newspaper that Microsoft was planning to release the Zune 3.0 in both the U.S. and Europe in late 2009. Those are all the details so far, but exciting info nonetheless.

Asus’ Eee PC laptop has become quite known in the tech community. Asus has been planning to release a desktop version of their low-price laptop, and it is now expected to debut in the April-May time frame this year. The first versions of the Eee Desktop, named the E-DT, will be powered by Celeron processors, and later will be switched to Intel’s dual-core Atom CPUs. The other hardware specs are unknown at this time. Prices will be between $200 and $300, and there will be a black and a white color scheme for you to choose from. Picture credit goes to TechConnect Magazine and Electronista.

You have probably seen these products online, but are they worth your money? These knockoffs are made in China and they closely resemble Apple’s products. Some people are completely happy with these MP3 players. They don’t have touch sensitivity, they have a completely different user interface, but they also have more features than the real thing, and they cost a fraction of the price. If you decide to buy a “knockoff iPod” you won’t get a warranty and you won’t get any support should something break or go wrong. So should you buy one?

Personally I would never buy a ripoff product. If I pay over $20 for something, I expect it to have some kind of warranty. These fake MP3 players don’t have warranties, and they cost from $30 to $100. Most of these players have other features, like FM radio and voice recording. But here’s the thing – other brand-name MP3 players have the same features, for about the same price. Why get a ripoff product when you can get a Sandisk Sansa, Creative Zen, Sony, Samsung, or another brand-name MP3 player for a few bucks more than a knockoff iPod. And these players have the same extra features such as voice recording, radio, video, and more.

Conclusion
If you can’t afford a genuine Apple MP3 player, get another cheaper brand-name one, and don’t get a knockoff. Most people who do get the Chinese knockoffs just want to fit in with the iPod crowd, so they want an MP3 player that looks like an iPod. Check out CNET for some good, cheap MP3 players.